Convenience No. 1 Factor In Customer Loyalty for Banks, Study Finds

A recent survey suggested that banking customers care more about convenience than customer service or fees in choosing a bank, and mobile banking customers are some of the most loyal a bank can find.

Customers want convenience more than any other attribute from their banking experience, according to a new online survey by Harris Interactive for Yodlee Interactive, an online banking solutions provider. The survey of 2,219 banking customers found that 63% of those surveyed said they stay with their current because of convenience.

Customer service and low fees ranked next behind convenience, with 48% and 42% of the vote, respectively. And 33% of the respondents who use mobile banking said that their mobile banking experience is one of the reasons they stay with their banks.

Mobile banking users tended to be very satisfied with their bank’s digital channel offerings. According to the survey, 71% of mobile bankers ranked themselves as either satisfied or very satisfied with their bank’s mobile and online products and services.

This indicates a corollary between mobile banking usage and customer loyalty, Joseph Polverari, Yodlee’s chief strategy and development officer, said in a statement announcing the survey’s findings yesterday. “With the anticipated growth of mobile banking in the next four years, banks that want to boost customer loyalty should strongly consider developing apps that increase the convenience of consumer banking,” Polverari suggested.

Overall 31% of those surveyed said they use mobile banking, with 49% smartphone owners using their smartphones for mobile banking, compared to 36% of tablet owners. Most of the smartphone owners use their bank’s app to access mobile banking, while most tablet owners still use the browser, the survey found. And smartphone owners deposit checks with their smartphones more often than tablet owners do so with their tablets (33% vs. 22%).

The survey also found a connection between mobile check deposit usage and household income. Among smartphone owners, those with a household income above $75,000 were more than twice as likely to use mobile check deposit as those with less than $35,000 (44% vs. 21%).

Jonathan Camhi has been an associate editor with Bank Systems & Technology since 2012. He previously worked as a freelance journalist in New York City covering politics, health and immigration, and has a master's degree from the City University of New York's Graduate School ... View Full Bio

I used to use mobile banking a lot until my bank required me to update iOS Gă÷ I never did it because I wanted to preserve my Google Maps and not deal with the Apple Maps fiasco. Since, I use the mobile website to check my balance Gă÷ and it is severely lacking in terms of speed and responsiveness compared to the app. Banks need to invest in creating great mobile sites as well as apps.

All of these findings are insightful and important; however, the most important thing that should be taken from this is the fact that consumers are constantly changing. What works today, probably won't be as effective tomorrow, and there doesn't seem to be a customer service status quo waiting on the horizon. So, how do you compete? It's all about the data...

Many companies are not doing an effective job of tracking the Gă footprintGăÍ of each customer, which can provide real-time, valuable information about how your customers want to interact with you. It's really up to you to collect, process and use that data effectively. But, this has to be a continuous improvement process. You can't just monitor consumer perceptions once, or even once a year - it has to happen every, single day. It's not an easy process, but you won't be disappointed in the payoff if you spend the time to get it done.

I'm not surprised about the smartphone vs. tablet percentages here. It would seem to me that more people are likely to have a smartphone with them than a tablet when they are on the go and need to make a quick transaction. If you needed to log into your account while at a restaurant, for example, you would probably would prefer to do it quickly on a smartphone, as opposed to taking out your iPad.